Teen stands up to woman bullying guide dog on bus

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When a blind man brought his guide dog onto a bus in New Taipei City, a female passenger complained that the guide dog was smelly. She started yelling at the bus driver after he refused to open the window.

Mr. Lan (the blind passenger) recounts the incident: "I told her my dog wasn't stinky, that it didn't smell. She said I was yelling at her and complained. She told the bus company that the driver had allowed passengers to bring their pets onto the bus."

"I told her that if she had a problem with me she should just come to me and don't take it out on the driver," said Mr. Lan. "The driver had nothing to do with this. He needed to protect the rights of all the passengers. The driver asked her to lower her voice. But she was being totally unreasonable and made a scene on the bus."

Appalled at what he saw, a high school student asked his fellow passengers to vote. They all agreed that the guide dog smelled just fine.

Mr. Lin (the bus driver) said: "The student who tried to stop her was sitting in the first seat behind her. He thought her actions were totally out of line because it is perfectly legal to bring a guide dog on board. They have the right to board a bus. The dog behaved well and didn't smell at all! It didn't bother anyone else. The passengers initiated a vote among themselves; and everyone voted the dog wasn't stinky."

The woman quickly made an embarrassed exit after realizing no one was on her side.

Mr. Lan pointed out that more blind individuals would be willing to come out if the environment were more inviting. "If the atmosphere was more friendly, I believe more friendly people would be willing to come out."

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To the teen.. way to go. You did a great thing. I hope Mr. Lan didn't take this ignorant womans ranting to heart and that he and his dog are doing well. This woman has no business out in public. Someone needs to put *her* on a leash. ;)

Love goes out to the teen who stood up for the service dog and its owner. Lady, you need to get educated ...in more ways then one. Service dogs are working dogs, which is something you need to do. Get a job and mind your own business.

This woman was totally out of line, and I'm glad the teen stood up for the blind man and his guide dog. He is to be commended for his actions, but that stupid woman needs to be educated - she is obviously very ignorant!

i have never seen an emotionally depressed guide dog. i've seen many dogs whose faces just naturally look sad (such as the bloodhound) but nobody would keep a dog in a job it finds depressing because the blind person's *life* depends on that dog. would you trust your safety to a depressed air traffic controller?

That lady sounds like an idiot. And very disrespectful. I applaud that kid. Also, to the person who finds the idea upsetting because the dogs "look sad." As a guide dog puppy raiser, I can tell you that is not the case. Those dogs are trained to behave like that. They're taught to be extremely calm in public so as not to cause any problems or nuisance to the blind person or the surrounding public. The dogs actually enjoy what they are doing and actually get very excited when their harness(or puppy raising vest) comes out. They wouldn't be kept in the programs if they didn't enjoy what they do. Plus when they vest or harness comes off they do get to be normal dogs, with a few restrictions for their well being.

Although I personally find guide dogs very upsetting - they're often labs and look so sad - they have a job to do and are legally allowed everywhere. Kudos for teh teen who had the guts to stand up for Mr.Lan and his dog and for her...I hope someones dog pees on her leg.

Kudos to the teenager who objected to this woman's behavior! Guide dog users have to maintain a certain level of care for their dogs. Unless there are extenuating circumstances, ie. illness of the person, etc., NO GUIDE-DOG would be allowed to stink. Some people just don't know when to keep their mouths shut! Unless I'm mistaken, ( it could happen), WORLD WIDE, Guide-dogs are allowed virtually anywhere people are allowed to go. Deal with it, Lady!!